Residential Development at Orchard Downs in Urbana, IL

RESIDENTIAL REDEVELOPMENT AT

ORCHARD DOWNS,

URBANA

PRAHALLAD BADAMI

UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS, URBANA-CHAMPAIGN

Executive Summary The report aims to convey the proposed redevelopment of Orchard Downs located in Urbana using the Low-Impact Development paradigm. The proposed development would help rejuvenate the sparsely developed neighborhood.

Orchard Downs is a 114 acre residential locality in the city of Urbana of Champaign County. It is located adjacent to the residential development of Historic Urbana District and presently functions as graduate housing for students at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. It possesses great potential to become a well contained neighborhood with denser residential and commercial development interspersed with green spaces.

Cover Images (Top) Orchard Place Apartments in Fall 1959, after construction

https://www.press.uillinois.edu/books/tate_franch/illini_place/images/Figure_19_Orchard_Downs_b.jpg

(Center) Orchard Downs, present day

http://www.news-gazette.com/sites/all/files/images/2016/01/19/1orchard_downs_0.jpg

Facing Springwoods Village, TX Master plan

https://djatk2ty0o64v.cloudfront.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/24150730/BigPictureMap1.jpg

The Socio-Economic Analysis clearly portrayed the state of lack of access to commercial spaces from the neighborhood. It also portrayed the lack of density in site development and the prevailing population’s age-groups and incomes. The Financial Feasibility Analysis showed that a denser development in context of the existing fabric would have an Internal Rate of Return of 7.3 percent in comparison to the 8.3 percent which is the most attainable under Mixed-use Development.

The Master Plan proposes the location of swales and ponds to help with the storm-water management. It provides for commercial development in the northern part of the site housing retail and office spaces. The low and medium density housing will be in the central portion of the site while the high-density residential will be in the southern region. Waterways and green spaces act as buffer spaces within and all around the site. The Low-impact development paradigm has previously been used in the development of Springwoods Village in Texas.

Table of Contents

Mission Statement Redeveloped Orchard Downs will provide revitalized housing options for graduate students at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. The commercial center will service the historic Urbana district and the inhabitants of Orchard Downs. The development tries to achieve a balance of exclusivity for the inhabitants of Orchard Downs while still connecting them to residential Urbana.

04

Introduction

06

Socio-Economics

08

Finances

10

Water

12

Masterplan

14

Street Design

16

Conclusion

17

References

17

Introduction

For undertaking effective development, it is imperative to make informed decisions and forecasts based on the data available. This required analyzing the various factors that contribute to the neighborhood context, the tangibles and the intangibles, the numeric and the non-numeric, to better comprehend the data and the trend that might lead into growth and development.

Located in the state of Illinois, Orchard Downs is a residential community in the city of Urbana of Champaign County. Being a sister city of Champaign, highways 74 and 45 run near and the railroad passes through Champaign. But the nearest commercial establishments are located East of Orchard Downs at least 20 minutes away by bus.

ORCHARD DOWNS

06

Facing: 114 acres of land available for development

Socio-Economics Being zoned by the city of Urbana as CRE (Commercial-Recreation-Education), there is huge disparity in the density of population at Orchard Downs housing compared to the housing in the surrounding residential areas. This drawback feeds into the lack of frequent bus trips and commercial establishments. Moreover, Intersection Density is low in this pocket of land compared to the adjoining residential neighborhood on the East. It is very evident that most of the population living in the area fall under the age bracket of 18-34 and pursue Graduate studies either in Masters or Doctoral programs. It is interesting to note that more than 40% of the population are married and earn a moderate income of around $25,000 per annum.

Opposite: Population 25 Years and Over: Master’s Degree and Doctorate Degree

Strengths - Available land for development, housing requirement for the university Weaknesses - Connect to public spaces, homogeneous development, low affordability

Opposite: Married-couple family

Opportunities - Increasing Density of developAbove: CRE Zoning of Orchard Downs site adjacent R-3 ment, creating access to commercial spaces Threats - Present zoning, lack of public transport stops The Analysis points to a strong requirement of Dense Residential or Mixed Use Development to cater to the housing, commercial and transportation needs of the Graduate Student community living with families or dependents. The essence of family community in the adjacent Urbana neighborhoods to the North and the East will contribute to the fabric of the Orchard Downs community and bring in revenue by the establishment of commercial ventures. While Rezoning may be required for a complete redevelopment, intervention development can be undertaken without changes to Zoning.

08

Zoning of residential Urbana Below: Population Density (per sq. mile)

Opposite: Total Population Age-groups

Opposite: Median Household Income

Finances Scenario 1: The plot offers a land of 114 acres. Under CRE Zoning, 55% of the land cover should be dedicated to Open Space which renders 51.3 acres available for construction. This land would be distributed for Multi-family and Single-family residences as the zoning restricts Commercial development. The best case scenario seems to be to dedicate the land area available for development entirely to Multi-family housing of the densest order as each plot has to accommodate a minimum of one acre land area. At an IRR of 3.1%, this is still a feasible development with 51 Multi-family residences, albeit with lower capital costs and lower returns compared to the following scenarios.

Scenarios 2 and 3: If the zoning is converted to either Multi Office Residential (MOR) or Residential (R-4), a denser development catering to more habitants and functionalities can be ensured. Under MOR, a total of 79.8 acres will be available for construction while 34.2 acres will be dedicated to Open Spaces. 12.85 acres each can be allotted to Office and Retail Spaces. For Housing, Single-family homes will take a lesser area at 20 acres and the remaining 34.1 acres can be Multi-family housing ensuring monthly returns. This step is encouraged by the assessment of the increasing requirement for Multi-family housing in Urbana in the last 3 years. An IRR of 8.3% is ensured for this development at the cost of disturbing the residential fabric of historic Urbana by introducing fairly dense commercial spaces.

Above: Development Regulations in the CRE District, City of Urbana

Scenario 4: R-4 zoning satisfying the requirement of 2000 sq.ft. lot area per dwelling unit ensures a lower IRR of 7.3% but at still housing a fairly dense commercial space of 20 acres in contrast to the 25.7 acres under MOR. The optimum scenario seems to be the use of R-4 (Conditional) zoning satisfying the additional condition requirements. This will reduce the acreage for Commercial Spaces by 5.7 acres compared to MOR while still ensuring an IRR of 7.3%.

Disregarding all Zoning provisions or seeking to convert the parcel of land to MOR might be detrimental to the fabric of the existing community at Orchard Downs and its surroundings. It is important to propose development that blends in with the present context to ensure seamless inclusion into the community. As seen in the table, development deriving an IRR of 7.3% seems optimum and ensures least disturbance by the inclusion of Commercial Spaces. If not feasible, the guidelines of existing CRE zoning can be followed to install a denser than present residential development.

Above: Development Regulations in the MOR District, City of Urbana

Above: Development Regulations in the R-4 District, City of Urbana

10

Water Storm-water Management: While the use of underground storm-water systems has been predominantly prevalent, opting for Best Management Practices with the usage of Swales and Retention Ponds for storm-water management ensures Green Development. Four different scenarios of land use were analyzed to illustrate the impact levels: Pre-development, Green-field, Conventional and Green Development, making a case for adoption of Best Management Practices in development the site.

Orchard Downs is a 114 acre plot. The area considered for the study is 134 acres, making for a buffer of 20 acres to acknowledge the immediate surrounding of the site, the soil types in the buffer area and how it will affect the decisions we make on the site under consideration. The soils on site belong mostly to Groups A and B. Being of Flanagan-Drummer-Caitlin type, the soils are considered unsuitable for construction because of its wetness, low strength and frost action.

Due to the existence of a Watershed Area, the major flow of water is at a slope of 0.16%, measuring for a rise of 4 ft. for a length of 14,000 ft.

Above: Flood Hydrograph

Above: Shallow Infiltration Systems Below: Arrow showing Slope Distance

Gearing towards a highly residential and low commercial development, the development can be envisaged as occurring on either side of the Watershed. 35% of Open spaces and 45% of over 65% impervious surfaces residential development will lead to a discharge closer the that of a Farmland Area. An attempt has been made to accommodate two Retention Ponds in the shallow ponding areas and a Retention/Detention Pond or Swale in the relatively deeper ponding area.

Sanitary Management: There are many existing Sanitary Sewer Trunk Mains running below the site and a Treatment Plant in close vicinity.

There can be separation by use with the buildings on the Commercial plots feeding to the sewers in the north and residences feeding to the central and southern lines.

12

Above: Sanitary Network

Above: Sanitary Manhole Locations

Masterplan

Low-Impact Design (LID) is a design paradigm that attempts to affect in the least the character of a natural area in terms of drainage of rainwater and retention of it. LID seems to be apt for the location under consideration as it tends to produce the least disturbance to the fabric of the locality.

LID provides multifunctionality of the landscape, offers less maintenance and lifetime costs and increases the urban forest. Consequently, it reduces the urban heat island, improves air quality and reduces off site costs as there is no element of central infrastructure for conveyance and collection. Bioretention ponds offer an alternative to storm-water storage while Green Swales and Permeable Pavers help filter the storm water. Rain Garden also collect water and helps in groundwater discharge while Rain barrels in individual structures and Green Roofs helps mitigate the impact of development. Tree Box Filters also help in filtering storm water before collection in ponds or seepage into the ground. Building on Lynch’s five elements, the site incorporates a main path branching into secondary and tertiary pathways. The site is trifurcated with the Commercial at the north and Residential to the central and the south with a stream acting as buffer.

Green pockets can be developed for further buffering. The planning uses reduced road lengths and widths with doubly loaded corridors and cul-de-sacs. An attempt has been made to accommodate two Retention Ponds in the shallow ponding areas and a Retention/Detention Pond or Swale in the relatively deeper ponding area. Parking requirement for the Commercial area needs to be housed in a Multi-level Facility in the commercial area and on the Stilt Floor/Basement in the High Density Residential Area. Parking for other residences can be either attached to the houses or provided on the street.

Further to the site-level swales or mention ponds, the principle can be applied to each cul-desac to make each “district� self sufficient to manage its own storm-water needs by feeding to the larger ponds. Trees and shrubs around individual structures will better contribute to water retention, return to the soil and holding up of the top surface.

14

Street Design

Conclusion

Existing Orchard Dr. opens at two points on the western side of the site to the Collector Road of 60’ width. The road provides the nearest access to public transport facilities. The Collector Road leads to three Sub-collector Roads to service the commercial spaces, low-density housing and high-density housing respectively. The Residential Access roads are 40’ wide and accommodate parking on both side. The lane widths increase progressively from the Residential Access roads to the Collector Road. This is done to slow down traffic at the Residential level. The bike lane remains separated from the car lanes in order to provide free passage instead of the bike riders or the car drivers being on the lookout for oncoming traffic or opening car doors. All underground utilities will run either under the section with trees or streetlights above. In all cases, the trees act as the buffer between the development and the bike path while the pedestrian walkways act as buffer between the bike path and the car lanes.

Orchard Downs presents a great potential for residential redevelopment, given its present sparse development and lack of proximity to commercial establishments. The site offers a natural drainage system to drain storm-water from the site using retention ponds while naturally filtering the water using bioswales. Green spaces act as buffers between zones of development and can be developed as playgrounds. The road network incorporates a certain degree of hierarchy ending in cul-de-sacs which prevents cross-traffic when possible. The zones on the site are connected by walkways and bikeways giving access to the retail centers for the household dwellers. The proposed Low-impact development encourages healthy living through walkable communities, dedicated outdoor recreational spaces, low-pollution environment, best management practices like storm water management and landscape elements that promote natural processes.

Additional bike and walkways are provided connecting the high-density residential development through the low-density residential development and to the commercial spaces to provide ease of access to pedestrians and bikers to make quick purchases.

Above: 60’ Collector Road

Above: 60’ Sub-collector Road

16

Above: 40’ Access Road

References 1. City of Urbana, Zoning Ordinance of the City of Urbana 2. US Department of Housing and Urban Development, HUD PD&R Regional Reports 3. Natural Resources Conservation Service 4. http://websoilsurvey.sc.egov.usda.gov/App/WebSoilSurvey.aspx 5. Census Bureau (https://www.census.gov/), American Fact Finder (https://factfinder.census. gov/) 6. SocialExplorer https://www.socialexplorer.com/a9676d974c/explore 7. PlannersWeb http://plannersweb.com/2013/12/pro-forma-101-what-will-it-cost/ 8. Best Management Practices for Stormwater Run-off http://www.lccdnet.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/Ponds.pdf 9. Soil Survey of Champaign County, Illinois https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_MANUSCRIPTS/illinois/IL019/0/champaign_IL.pdf 10. Urban Hydrology for Small Watersheds https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/stelprdb1044171.pdf 11. Hydrology National Engineering Handbook https://policy.nrcs.usda.gov/OpenNonWebContent.aspx?content=27002.wba